POLL: Do you like Stainless Steel Appliances?

[Analog]

Seems like stainless steel has taken over appliances in recent years. Would your dream kitchen (and anything else) be made of stainless steel? Does this mean the DeLorean was way ahead of its time???

 

[dartworth]

The LG line @ Best Buy is nice.

Magnets will stick to them also. They aren't true stainless, but clean up a lot easier. We just bought a white Kenmore side by side yesterday btw...

 

[gittyup]

I will be buying all new stainless appliances for our new home. I really like the look of stainless for appliances, but not much for anything else. I will be going with GE because the new home already comes with a GE appliance provided by the builder. Now I need to find a way to order them online cheaper than at B&M.

 

[Eli]

eh?

If a magnet won't stick to it, it isn't stainless steel.

Edit: Ok, I wasn't quite sure, so I googled it. Apparently, I'm ignorant.

Stainless steels are a very broad group of metals. The name was adopted as a generic term for steel alloys with a minimum of 10.5% chromium. The chromium gives the steel its 'stainless' properties - essentially corrosion resistance. On the surface of the metal, a very thin chromium-rich oxide layer is formed which is inert - i.e. it prevents the steel from rusting. The advantage of stainless steels over plated steels is that, if scratched or damaged, the steel will 'self-repair' as a new oxide layer is formed. In plated steels, scratches in the plate will often lead to corrosion of the steel underneath.

In general, the higher the proportion of chromium, the stronger the corrosion resistance of the steel. In addition to chromium, other metals are added to give the steel particular properties such as strength and malleability. Specifically nickel is used to strengthen the oxide layer.

As for whether they are magnetic, the answer is that it depends. There are several families of stainless steels with different physical properties. A basic stainless steel has a 'ferritic' structure and is magnetic. These are formed from the addition of chromium and can be hardened through the addition of carbon (making them 'martensitic') and are often used in cutlery. However, the most common stainless steels are 'austenitic' - these have a higher chromium content and nickel is also added. It is the nickel which modifies the physical structure of the steel and makes it non-magnetic.

So the answer is yes, the magnetic properties of stainless steel are very dependent on the elements added into the alloy, and specifically the addition of nickel can change the structure from magnetic to non-magnetic.

The following company website has a useful high-level definition of the broad stainless steel categories. http://www.parkrow.org/stainless_steel.htm

 

[aircooled]

I like stainless appliances. But the ones I have now are white/black.

 

[IGBT]

I have a few stainless cook pots and a stainless stovetop steamer. Got rid of the teflon coated aluminum junk...

 

[KK]

Originally posted by: gittyup
I will be buying all new stainless appliances for our new home. I really like the look of stainless for appliances, but not much for anything else. I will be going with GE because the new home already comes with a GE appliance provided by the builder. Now I need to find a way to order them online cheaper than at B&M.

Do one of those programs where you can get 20% off gift cards like mainstreet savings, dealpass, etc. Do that and sign up for a 10% off(Lowes or Home Depot) coupon for a total of 28% in savings. So if you buy $2000 worth of appliances you'd only pay $1440. Check out fatwallet.

KK

 

[OS]

do stainless steel headers count?

 

[Ikonomi]

I like the look of stainless steel. It's very modern, easy to clean, and to me it has a more "expensive" look than other materials and finishes.

We bought this house with really old appliances, though. They were all matching black, so as my parents have upgraded, they kept the matching look, meaning all the appliances stay black.

 

[Shockwave]

I like the black myself. Stainless always struck me as people trying to impress others cause they own fancy stainless looking appliances.... I dunno.....

 

[DurocShark]

I've got 15 year old stainless steel pots that I swear by. I love the stainless look on the appliances too, but most of it isn't the high durability steel such as used on my pots.

 

[brtspears2]

I just like the shine.

 

[Ornery]

They are NOT made of stainless steel. They're built like every other appliance, with a stainless steel veneer applied. No big deal, and certainly not worth the premium charged for the upgrade, as far as the value of the material goes. Also, they are NOT easy to clean. They show every little fingerprint and smudge.

We did cough up the money for Amana's stainless refrigerator and oven. Our last refrigerator lasted 20 years, and was still running when we pulled it out. The oven was only 10 years old, and barely used. I figured, if these appliances are going to be around here that long, the higher price to get exactly what we want (actually, what my wife wanted), was negligible over that long period of time. In hindsight, I'd buy stainless again. The aesthetics are worth the premium, and could easily help bring more money for the house, when it's sold.

 

[Zim Hosein]

Yep - clean and modern

 

[SunnyD]

Very seksee.

 

[rudeguy]

Originally posted by: Ornery
They are NOT made of stainless steel. They're built like every other appliance, with a stainless steel veneer applied. No big deal, and certainly not worth the premium charged for the upgrade, as far as the value of the material goes. Also, they are NOT easy to clean. They show every little fingerprint and smudge.

We did cough up the money for Amana's stainless refrigerator and oven. Our last refrigerator lasted 20 years, and was still running when we pulled it out. The oven was only 10 years old, and barely used. I figured, if these appliances are going to be around here that long, the higher price to get exactly what we want (actually, what my wife wanted), was negligible over that long period of time. In hindsight, I'd buy stainless again. The aesthetics are worth the premium, and could easily help bring more money for the house, when it's sold.

Good call going with Amana!

When I finally break down and buy a house, the appliances will most likely be a smooth finish white or black. The tectured and stainless appliances just dont appeal to me.

 

[DainBramaged]

Originally posted by: Ikonomi
I like the look of stainless steel. It's very modern, easy to clean, and to me it has a more "expensive" look than other materials and finishes.

We bought this house with really old appliances, though. They were all matching black, so as my parents have upgraded, they kept the matching look, meaning all the appliances stay black.

If anything, I had heard that it was really hard to make them look clean.

 

[JC]

Originally posted by: Ornery
They are NOT made of stainless steel. They're built like every other appliance, with a stainless steel veneer applied. No big deal, and certainly not worth the premium charged for the upgrade, as far as the value of the material goes.

If you buy something like a Viking range, you'll find that it's largely made of stainless. True, the imitators (most consumer-grade appliances) are just stainless overlay panels.

 

[Ornery]

Yeah, commercial grade stuff likely has stainless structure to it, but they're priced like it, too!

 

[ohtwell]

They look pretty good!


: ) Amanda

 

[Lonyo]

Brushed satin steel toaster and kettle, designed by F.A. Porsche.
Would go stainless all the way if got new stuff, but it's a rented house, and the $$$ is probably going towards a car and computer bits.

 

[Amused]

All my stores are oceans of stainless steel appliances and counters. So I'm not too big on having them in my home...

Not only that, but stainless fingerprints like a motherfscker. You will spend the rest of your days either wiping down your appliances, or looking at a mess of fingerprints.

 

[Tom]

i prefer the warmth of titanium.

 

[MustangSVT]

sure , my whole room would be stainless steel if i had money coming out of my @ss